Clara Chuiton
@LiteraryClara
Literary Agent
literary associate at Olswanger Literary // romance writer // mother to a cat // 💫 open to queries 💫// pp by @makowwka
14 MSWL

I would love to see more high-concept horror, in settings or time periods that feel new. Queer horror (think THE DEAD AND THE DARK or WILDER GIRLS but adult), gothic, and psychological horror are my favorites, but I never know what I'm going to fall in love with!

Rachel Stark
@syntactics
Editor
Editor of graphic novels, novels & IP @DisneyBooks ▫️ House Stark; more of an Arya than a Tony ▫️ Opinions my own; pic @JarrettWilliams 's ▫️ gender’s a lie🤷‍♀️
147 MSWL
6 Tips

🌟High-concept comedy that can be summed up in a single sentence
▫️Think: The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue, Jacked Up, Beauty Queens #MSWL

Rachel Stark
@syntactics
Editor
Editor of graphic novels, novels & IP @DisneyBooks ▫️ House Stark; more of an Arya than a Tony ▫️ Opinions my own; pic @JarrettWilliams 's ▫️ gender’s a lie🤷‍♀️
147 MSWL
6 Tips

Here's what I'm looking for in NOVELS:
🌟High-concept YA fantasy and speculative fiction, especially that which uses the conventions of its genre to critique, subvert, or illuminate a truth about our world
▫️Think: Raybearer, Graceling, Dread Nation, The Witch King #MSWL

Rachel Stark
@syntactics
Editor
Editor of graphic novels, novels & IP @DisneyBooks ▫️ House Stark; more of an Arya than a Tony ▫️ Opinions my own; pic @JarrettWilliams 's ▫️ gender’s a lie🤷‍♀️
147 MSWL
6 Tips

BROADLY, I'm looking for big bets w/ high-concept commercial hooks, expert plotting & pacing, & the potential to become leads. My taste skews toward upmarket voices & art paired with a strong sales hook that can be summed up in an intriguing line or two. #MSWL

Alex Arnold
@alexyarnold
Editor
Senior Editor of fiction & nonfiction for small kids, big kids, & teens @quirkbooks . Former child who hasn't forgotten a thing.
46 MSWL

Coming-of-age stories bursting with heart are my forever-love in MG fiction--but I still need that high-concept hook. The pitch should make me ask “what’s next?” or "how??" (or both! 🙃)

Alex Arnold
@alexyarnold
Editor
Senior Editor of fiction & nonfiction for small kids, big kids, & teens @quirkbooks . Former child who hasn't forgotten a thing.
46 MSWL

Voicey YA romcoms, especially if they’re queer, and especially if they’re made more high-concept with a unique structure or unexpected twist

Maria Vicente
@agentvicente
Literary Agent
senior literary agent + advisor @psliterary
208 MSWL
329 AskAgent
330 Queries
107 Tips

MG #MSWL

🛶 characters w/ compelling interests
🦄 luscious sci-fi and fantasy
🐅 animal stories
📘 high concept chapter book series
👻 creepy horror

Joanna MacKenzie
@joannamackenzie
Literary Agent
Agent at Nelson Literary Agency. Chicagoan via Canada. she/her
23 MSWL
1 Queries

I'm back open to queries and can't wait to hear from all of you amazing #amwriting and #amquerying humans. Send me your twisty high concept thrillers, voicey mysteries, and timely and fun commercial fiction. #MSWL

Stephanie Stein
@stephlystein
Editor
Senior Editor @HarperChildrens & @HarperTeen , she/her, 47% caffeine by volume. Opinions my own, and I do have a lot of them. 🌈
213 MSWL
34 AskAgent

... a broad range of MG & YA fiction and graphic novels--fantasy (my first & greatest love as a reader), historical, romance, some great humor, and high-concept contemporary (especially with a framing device such as epistolary elements, then-and-now timelines, etc.) #MSWL

Ramona Pina
@PinaRamona
Literary Agent
She/Her🇨🇻🇯🇲🌟Book Hoarder 🌟host @podcasthollow 🌟DIY enthusiast 🌟Writer 🌟Literary Agent @bookendslit 🌟 QueryManager.com/rpina
13 MSWL

•Think high concept sci-fi like Dreamfall Chapters (video game), where people are addicted to virtual reality and can't funciton in society.
•Dark fantasy themes with equally dark humor like Sweeney Todd and Dark Shadows. Tim Burton is a vibe.

Peter Knapp
@petejknapp
Literary Agent
Lit agent with @parkandfine representing kid lit with enthusiasm! petejknapp.com
290 MSWL
118 AskAgent
228 Queries
5 Tips

We also love high-concept, high-stakes middle grade fantasy like AMARI & THE NIGHT BROTHERS, ARU SHAH, NEVERMOOR, and TRISTAN STRONG. #MSWL

Trisha de Guzman
@trishadeg
Editor
🇵🇭 Filipino immigrant ✨ Editor at Farrar Straus Giroux Books For Young Readers ✨ wannabe outdoorsman @mackidsbooks @fiercereads #WNDB #POCinPub
36 MSWL

YOUNG ADULT:
--QTPOC romance with banter, emotionally complex, flawed characters, and ✨ intersectionality ✨
--High-concept speculative fiction examining current issues (esp horror & magical realism)
--Sweeping historical fiction about untold movements, events, or individuals

Sam B. Farkas
@SamBFarkas
Literary Agent
Foreign Rights & Agent at Jill Grinberg Literary. History dork. Gritty fanatic. Licorice connoisseur. She/her. Writer rep’d by @patricianels
47 MSWL

I'd also love to see high-concept YA thrillers, especially if they incorporate a structure that adds to the tension. I'm haunted by Stephanie Kuehn's WHEN I AM THROUGH WITH YOU, which is told from jail, and I'd looooove something like that. #MSWL

Cecilia Lyra
@ceciliaclyra
Literary Agent
Storyteller & Storyseller / Associate Literary Agent @PSLiterary ✍🏽 Co-host of @TSNOTYAW podcast 🎧 Feminist. Latinx. Immigrant. Reader.
142 MSWL
58 AskAgent
2 Tips

I am eager for more high-concept sci-fi and fantasy with literary and upmarket feel. Examples of my favorites in this space include THE POWER by Naomi Alderman, THE AGE OF MIRACLES by Karen Thompson Walker, and THE NIGHT CIRCUS by Erin Morgenstern.

Cecilia Lyra
@ceciliaclyra
Literary Agent
Storyteller & Storyseller / Associate Literary Agent @PSLiterary ✍🏽 Co-host of @TSNOTYAW podcast 🎧 Feminist. Latinx. Immigrant. Reader.
142 MSWL
58 AskAgent
2 Tips

Psychological dramas in the vein of THE PUSH by Ashley Audrain are high on my wish-list, as are high-concept thrillers that keep me guessing. I devoured WE WERE NEVER HERE by Andrea Bartz and WHO IS MAUD DIXON? by Alexandra Andrews.

Mara Delgado-Sánchez
@little_mswriter
Assistant Editor
🇵🇷 That witch from the Caribbean. Word wrangler @stmartinspress | @wednesdaybooks . Somewhere with the chupacabras. Opinions mine. (she/her)
73 MSWL

and high concept thrillers. I want to see something different and fresh

- For contemporary, I’m looking for stories on the lighter side (friendships, romcoms, family, etc)

For Adult:

Basically what I said above. I also do category romance, women’s fiction centered on #MSWL

Emily Forney
@EmilyKaitlinnn
Literary Agent
Literary Agent @bookendslit • Undiscovered National Treasure • Neighborhood Book Bimbo • emilykaitlin.com for #MSWL (she/her)
66 MSWL
16 AskAgent

I would love to work on a high concept, beautifully aesthetic YA fantasy, period drama, spy or boarding school story with series potential #mswl

Beth Phelan
@beth_phelan
Literary Agent
she/her. mg & ya literary agent @galltzackerlit . founder 501c3 NPO @_DiverseVoices (#DVpit/#DVart, DVcon &more). closed to unsolicited submissions.
128 MSWL
125 AskAgent
27 Tips
Beth Phelan
@beth_phelan
Literary Agent
she/her. mg & ya literary agent @galltzackerlit . founder 501c3 NPO @_DiverseVoices (#DVpit/#DVart, DVcon &more). closed to unsolicited submissions.
128 MSWL
125 AskAgent
27 Tips

I’ve been getting thru my requested submissions and looking for more!

#mswl:
YA grounded thrillers, high concept contemporary with a speculative twist
MG non-portal fantasy, speculative twists, intergenerational stories

Everything with and by marginalized people please!